I'm aware I'll  loose the economies of scale a proper MHP would have, but would this idea be cost prohibitive, or potentially a good stepping stone to one day being able to graduate to a real MHP while gaining local industry knowledge & contacts? 

Here today gone tomorrow.Your equity is not earning it's keep but as long as you use real estate to park your excess cash you will not be able to do much better. 

She has a lender lined up to give her a conventional loan, but she needs 5 months to complete their requirements to qualify.Since she is about to loose all the equity she has put into the property, she has offered me the following terms: I'll pay off her land contract, she'll make monthly payments to me of $1,200, and then in 5 months she'll refinance out and pay me out a lump sum of $160,000, for a profit of $20,000.

I personally have, and continue to thrive off of repeat investors but I am always looking to grow my network of relationships.So for all of my wholesalers and investors out there~Legitimate Wholesalers- have any of you experienced this dilemma and what has your solution been to establish legitimacy in a time where our profession is being too loosely equated to the "get rich quick" mentality rather thanInvestors-What are some of the pain points that you have run into with wholesalers?

Initially it was difficult to find good tenants - people were still loosing jobs in Phoenix at the time of purchase.

I figured now I could double payments every month and what I was paying on these additional bills will now me excess money each month.

Should i still take some of their security deposit if the place is in decent shapeShould i share with them the fact that i need to occupy the place for a cheaper home loan loosing leverage?

Compared to a single family house, if the tenant moves out of the sfh, you loose all of your income plus you have to spend the money to get the house ready for the next tenant.

my biggest fear in Real estate investing is the lunging dog.....not just being in a back yard, but particularly from being the unfamiliar face in the middle of a dead end neighborhood street....in NE Florida....a territorial dog is often loose,, or if charged up enough easily can snap the tethered tie leash or hop the small small fence...

Most people would find that excessive, but it is very inexpensive.If you are used to just living in a bedroom, my advice is either find another room to rent or move into a property and rent out your extra bedrooms.As I have gotten older with a family, I value a nice home in a good neighborhood more than I did when I was younger.